


Zone

by Koschei_Oakdown



Category: Green Lantern - All Media Types, Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps (Comics)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-26
Updated: 2019-04-26
Packaged: 2020-02-04 17:08:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18608878
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Koschei_Oakdown/pseuds/Koschei_Oakdown
Summary: Cars are thrown





	Zone

**Author's Note:**

> Credit to DC Comics

"Sinestro!" was the ecstatic call Sinestro heard before a warm body barreled into him. Arms wrapped around his torso, a face buried itself in his shoulder, and Thaal forgot about everything. Where he was, what he was supposed to be doing, none of it mattered because Hal was right there. As it should be. Had it ever been different?

Fingers dug into Sinestro's back, Hal was clutching onto him with a stubborn passion. "You took forever. I thought you'd gone and gotten yourself killed." The irritated words tried to hide how Hal still hadn't let go, voice muffled by Sinestro's shoulder, until he pulled away and fixed Sinestro with a fierce gaze. "Don't tell me you went gallivanting off without me."

As Thaal couldn't remember anything specific about what he'd been doing the last few days, he was puzzled by this remark, tried to think if he had indeed done what Hal accused him of. In the process, he glanced down at the symbol on his chest, of a Green Lantern, the same as always. Why had he even checked? Perhaps whatever he'd been doing as a Green Lantern was the cause of this disorientation.

Brow furrowed, Thaal shook his head, as though that could shock his memories back into existence. It did not work. "I don't recall," he finally settled on confessing to Hal. There was no reason not to trust his human partner, they worked together, and he did value Hal's input. "What was I doing?"

This brought Hal up short and he leaned closer, examined Sinestro with a scrutinising gaze. "If you don't remember, it doesn't matter," he concluded. "C'mon, let's get back to Oa. They can get you checked out, find out where this amnesia came from. Sound good?"

It did all sound quite reasonable, so Thaal agreed and allowed Hal to escort him to the headquarters of the Green Lantern Corps. His Corps. Being a Green Lantern was not strange, not in the slightest. So why then, did he feel so uncomfortable, when surrounded by Green Lanterns?

No doubt picking up on Sinestro's tense posture, Hal nudged him and asked quietly, "You OK? You look like you're about to cut and run. Not that I can blame you, we have to give our report to the Guardians and I can already imagine how boring and frustrating that will be." Hal sighed in a long suffering manner. "Hey, if you do decide you want to ditch, let me know because I am so coming with you."

Very little of this did Sinestro process, he'd been too worked up by the sight of the Green Lanterns on Oa, itched to fight or fly away as though his life was in danger. But it wasn't, that was ridiculous. These were his colleagues. There was no need to run.

Except he saw flashes of images behind his eyelids that told him the exact opposite. Whenever he blinked, he was fighting with some new Green Lantern, sometimes on this very planet. Was it only a dream? He wished that to be so but it was so real. All the emotions he'd felt were piling up on him and it was too much.

Giving in to his instinct of self preservation, Sinestro grasped Hal's elbow. "I wish to go," he told Hal, words quick, running together off his tongue. "Perhaps to Earth?" Without waiting for an answer, he began to lead Hal away, already setting his destination to Earth. They flew through space together.

"This is very irresponsible of you, Sinestro," Hal commented, as usual flying circles around Sinestro and mostly just showing off. "Are you going to make me hand in the report instead? I don't really mind, since it's you. I'm just wondering why the sudden change of plans. Intending to get me alone, are you?"

Now he was away from Oa, Sinestro had relaxed somewhat. This whole wariness of Green Lanterns was ridiculous anyway, he knew that, he himself was a Green Lantern, and Hal was a Green Lantern. That was the most convincing fact, Hal would never hurt him. Or would he?

Of course not, so Thaal focused on what Hal had said to him, not on ridiculous alternate realities. "Perhaps I am," he responded, sent a quick glance in Hal's direction. "Does that concern you?"

For a brief moment, Hal paused, but he soon picked up speed, flew along beside Sinestro. "No. Should it?" His smile was playful, wiped away Thaal's own concerns. "Sounds more like fun to me." With an easy movement, Hal flipped over onto his back, so he was flying upside down and backwards, and his smile brightened at Sinestro. "Race you."

In a blink of an eye, Hal was gone, and Sinestro followed, determined not to be left behind. He pulled up when the bright blue sky was at his back, and he glanced around for any specks of green. "Jordan?" he called, and not a moment later, Hal slammed into him at full speed. They both went crashing to the ground.

It didn't hurt, Thaal had his ring, but he automatically twisted around mid air, so it was him who impacted with the concrete, not Hal. "Whoops," Hal said, breathless, on top of Sinestro now. His hair had fallen into his eyes, he brushed it back and grinned. "I might have been a little overeager there."

His mood was infectious, and it didn't matter they'd left a crater in the middle of the road. Actually, that did sort of matter, Thaal didn't want to get hit by a car, so he pushed Hal off him onto the footpath. "You should be more careful," Sinestro advised, moving so he was off the road too. Of course that left the crater still there, a hazard to drivers.

After a moment of consideration, Sinestro fixed the road with a quick complicated construct. Now, the humans wouldn't be in danger and he turned back to Hal, who was watching him, somehow sitting comfortably on the concrete.

There was a splash of colour under Hal's jaw, Sinestro frowned and reached out. His fingers came away, coloured with a slight tinge of red. The blood was fresh, Hal must've been cut in their collision or the crash to the ground. Hardly any blood had been spilled however, that was good. So why could Thaal not move on from it, remained staring at the blood on his fingertip?

Before his eyes, the blood spread out, dribbled down each of his knuckles until his fingers were all soaked in it. He looked back to Hal, brow furrowed, and Hal was an unmoving shape on the ground. The sounds of a distant battle reached Sinestro's ears, but he blocked it all out, his thoughts consumed only with Hal.

It all blurred into one horrible moment, but Thaal felt strangely disconnected from it. Was this just a hallucination, a dream that wasn't really happening? No, he was sure this was real, it felt more real than before, when he'd been on an Earth street with Hal. Perhaps that had been the dream. He didn't know, couldn't be sure, was only certain he was suffocating even though it was Hal who was dying. Hal was dead.

Sucking in a sharp breath, needing to breathe, Sinestro leapt to his feet and all the blood disappeared. Once more, Hal was sitting before him, looking confused. Now though, Thaal wasn't confused, he pointed an accusing finger at Hal. "You are dead," he declared. "I remember now, despite your attempts to take my memory from me, whoever you are. Whatever you are."

How dare anyone try to mess with his mind? And to do it by using Hal against him was even worse. The culprit would be destroyed, Thaal swore that to himself now, silently, while fixing this fake Hal with a furious stare.

"What are you talking about?" Hal was on his feet too, still confused but with an undercurrent of anger. "I'm not dead, I'm right here." He tried to approach but Sinestro backed off, not keen to let this fabrication anywhere near him again. Seeming to realise this, Hal stopped and tried another tactic, "Maybe we really should get you checked out. Just come with me to Oa -"

"No," Sinestro was firm. "There is no Oa. It was destroyed. Hal Jordan would know that. But of course, you are not Hal Jordan." That settled it, Thaal was going to get his answers and he grasped Hal by the throat. "Who are you and what do you want from me?"

Of course, the fake Hal struggled, just like the real Hal did actually, but there was a clear difference. Because Hal was dead and no one could replace him. "I'm me!" Hal choked out. "We're friends! At least, I thought we were. What's wrong with you?"

Clearly, this fake Hal wouldn't be giving up any information without proper persuasion, and Sinestro dropped him. Only to turn around and snatch up a car, with a construct, from where it was parked at the side of the road. "Tell me who you are!" he demanded, prepared to attack. "What do you want? How do I get out of here?"

Still though, the fake Hal was acting confused, trying to get out of telling Sinestro what he needed to know. Well, it wasn't going to work and Sinestro tossed the car at him. "Whoa!" Reacting quickly, Hal ducked under a shield construct and the force of the car hitting it sent him sliding backwards. "What the -?"

Eyes narrowed, Sinestro had not given up, was not finished, and he tossed several more cars at the fake Hal in quick succession. He broke through the shield and a car finally smashed into Hal, pinning him against the concrete.

Before Hal could break free, Sinestro swooped forward and knelt down beside him. He applied pressure to the car, the fake Hal gasped in pain. "Are you prepared to speak, pretender? Or perhaps I should kill you? Would that end this illusion?"

"Sinestro, stop." Weakly, Hal tried to shove the car off his chest but he had no success, getting smashed against the ground must've have taken a lot out of him. Good, so Thaal was getting somewhere. "It's me! I'm not trying to trick you. Why won't you -"

Irritated this fake was still trying to be Hal, Sinestro cut him off with a hand at his throat. This time, he bore down with a lot more strength, he was sure if he did kill the pretender, he would be free. He needed to be free, would not spend another second here with a lie, but something smashed into his side.

With a grunt of pain, Sinestro was flung away from the fake Hal and he hit the ground in an inelegant roll. When he lifted his head, shaking it from side to side to clear his vision, Earth was gone and he was left in a place dimly lit by shades of green light. The ground was smooth, like the surface of a power ring, glass like and cool.

A little way away from him, the fake Hal was getting to his feet, clearly disorientated, hand rubbing at the back of his head. It must have been him who had attacked, in a surge of strength, for no one else was around. "I knew there was a reason I was annoyed at you for taking so long. What were you doing? I told you to put the ring on when I died! And uh, sorry about the whole playing Green Lantern thing. Dying tends to disorientate me."

Somehow, Hal now knew about dying, and Sinestro hesitated. The moment Hal spoke of, his last dying wish that Sinestro bear his ring, was something only the two of them knew about. So was Hal not a fake? Had he, in fact, temporarily lost his memory in death until Sinestro had snapped him out of it? It all seemed impossible, he'd watched Hal die, there was no coming back from it. Was there no other explanation for all this?

"You are a creation of my own mind," Sinestro deduced, and he pulled himself to his feet. "To help me cope with my sadness over your death. And now you wish to reprimand me for delaying the fulfillment of your last request. I apologise, but I was fighting your Green Lantern friends simply to keep your ring with me."

Obviously frustrated, Hal rubbed at his forehead before continuing with an insistent, "I'm not a hallucination. Or a trick. I'm actually here, I'm actually real. I just got stuck in here when I died." As though it was a regular occurrence, Hal waved dismissively to their surroundings before turning back to Sinestro with a furrowed brow. "Did you say the Green Lantern Corps was trying to take my ring from you?"

When Thaal nodded, though he was not entirely sure what was going on, Hal looked irritated. "I gave that ring to you. Let me guess, they told you it was Guardian property and they wanted to seize it from you? Well, actually, it's my property and I can do what I want with it. I made the thing. Sure, it was with stolen technology but I don't see how -"

On and on, Hal went, speaking of Guardian laws and Green Lanterns and how clearly, it all meant the ring he'd given to Sinestro had been his to give. Quite honestly, even Thaal had no idea how such a conclusion had been reached, he'd lost interest in trying to understand how Green Lanterns worked years ago. But if he had no idea, how could he so vividly imagine Hal saying all of this?

The answer was clear, Hal was telling the truth, he was still alive, inside his ring, and Sinestro had somehow connected with him by putting on that exact ring. "I believe you," Sinestro decided, interrupting Hal's rant. "I will help you get out of here. I will not give up until I have. Hal, I promise you -" Sinestro moved closer, grasped Hal's hand, and blinked awake to where he'd passed out on the floor after putting the ring on.

Confused, Thaal glanced around, and there Hal was, lying beside him, watching him with a sleepy gaze. "That was easier than I expected it to be," Hal revealed, now Sinestro was returning his stare. Their fingers were entwined together, Hal's right hand with Sinestro's left. "Thanks for doing what I asked, even though it took you a while." The ring was on Hal's finger now, back where it belonged.


End file.
